Church treasurers charged with theft

HONESDALE, PA — After separate investigations, two Wayne County women were charged last Friday with stealing more than $125,000 from churches where they served as treasurers.

Nancy Ann Swingle, 54, of Moscow, is charged with having stolen more than $70,000 from the Saint John’s Episcopal Church in Hamlin, while Nancy Gilbert, 49, of Honesdale, allegedly stole more than $55,000 from the Bethany United Methodist Church.

State Trooper Michael Brown filed Affidavits of Probable Cause in both cases. Swingle was said to have written checks to herself and cash from two church accounts over a period of nine years. False check register entries were made to conceal the thefts.

Gilbert wrote checks to four credit card companies from Bethany accounts over a six-year period. Two of the credit card accounts were in her name and she was associated with the other two.

According to District Attorney Mark Zimmer, both women were charged with felony third-degree theft, punishable by seven-year imprisonment and a $15,000 fine.

Both women have expressed a desire to make full restitution to their respective churches, Zimmer said.